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Ukraine’s president approves of ban for Russians to be official observers at elections

On February 7, Verkhovna Rada introduced amendments to electoral laws in Ukraine, banning Russian citizens from being official observers at presidential, parliamentary or local elections

KIEV, February 26. /TASS/. Ukrainian President Pyotr Poroshenko has signed the law that prohibits citizens of the Russian Federation and people proposed by Russia to act as official observers at elections in the country, the Ukrainian parliament said in a statement published on its website on Tuesday.

"Returned with the president’s signature," the webpage of the corresponding law says.

Read also

Ukraine’s election commission registers 90 OSCE observers, no Russians among them

On February 7, Verkhovna Rada introduced amendments to three laws on elections in Ukraine, banning Russian citizens from being official observers both personally and within international organizations at presidential, parliamentary or local elections.

The law says that it will come into force the next day following official publication in the media.

Peter Taylor, head of the Election Monitoring Mission of the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), said earlier that Ukraine’s position on observers from the Russian Federation does not respond to the OSCE principles. US Special Representative for Ukraine Negotiations Kurt Volker also stated the necessity to admit Russian observers to the Ukrainian presidential election.

The Ukrainian presidential election is scheduled for March 31. Under the law, members of parliament are elected on the last Sunday of October, that is on October 27 this year.

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